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"Becoming a vlog superstar involves a whole lot of hard work, but if you&amp;#39;re up to the challenge, you&amp;#39;re in luck\u2014because we called in the big guns.\n\n18-year-old YouTube sensation Bethany Mota went from zero to five million followers in a few short years with her charming fashion, beauty, and lifestyle videos. (You&amp;#39;ve probably also seen her Aeropostale collection!) We all know Michelle Phan, the 26-year-old beauty vlogging celebrity who has legions of YouTubers obsessed with her expert and easy-to-follow how-tos. She&amp;#39;s so legit that she launched her very own beauty line, Em by Michelle Phan, last year. And 22-year old Jenn Im manages to balance college and running her own fashion vlogger empire; the senior at University of California, Davis has even become a Fashion Week regular.\n\nThese three experts were more than happy to share their secrets to success with us, so get ready to learn a little!\n\nFirst things first: You need the right user name.\n\n &amp;quot;Pick one that represents who you are,&amp;quot; advises Michelle. &amp;quot;Something personal to you and your story.&amp;quot; Jenn recommends letting it come naturally\u2014be it a pun (like hers, Clothes Encounters), a nickname, or just your actual name. As a matter of fact, Bethany (whose handle is Macbarbie07) wishes that she&amp;#39;d used her first and last name because it&amp;#39;s simple and timeless.\n\nThe technical stuff is easier (and cheaper) than you think.\n\n Yes, you&amp;#39;ll need a camera. While Jenn loves her Canon T3i DSLR for HD videos, she does admit that it&amp;#39;s an investment (but a worthwhile one!). The two others say any type works\u2014be it a standard smart phone cam or even Bethany&amp;#39;s parents&amp;#39; old-school video camera. Michelle thinks it&amp;#39;s more about the lighting, and all three vloggers are proponents of budget-friendly natural rays. &amp;quot;Setting up your tripod in front of a large window on a sunny day is the cheapest way to get gorgeous lighting for your videos,&amp;quot; says Jenn. Bethany sometimes uses octagon lighting indoors, plus LED lights on her camera for outdoor filming. As for the all-important sound, built-in camera and laptop mics totally work for voiceovers. Michelle recommends also using a USB or snowball mic and recording in a smaller room to avoid any echoing.\n\nThere really is no best place to film!\n\n It all comes down to personal preference and the subject of the clip. Jenn likes a large wall\u2014wood, brick, a bright color, or white\u2014as long as it doesn&amp;#39;t distract from the outfit that she&amp;#39;s talking about. Bethany goes on location for many of her shoots, although she uses her cutely decorated room for haul videos. Everyone does agree on one thing: If you&amp;#39;re filming in your own house, tidy up!\n\nWhat NOT to wear in videos.\n\n Since these girls vlog about fashion and beauty, the sky&amp;#39;s the limit in terms of what to wear. That said, there are some don&amp;#39;ts. Jenn avoids wearing tiny prints like thin stripes and small polka dots. The camera will get confused and &amp;quot;you&amp;#39;ll end up looking like you&amp;#39;re wearing an optical illusion.&amp;quot; Through her experience, Bethany thinks updos like ponytails and buns don&amp;#39;t translate well to video.\n\nAnd what about editing?\n\n Seriously, have you watched their clips? It&amp;#39;s as if these girls have a Hollywood film editor on retainer! But guess what: They all just use their laptops. (And yes, they edit themselves.) It&amp;#39;s about trial and error and playing around with what you have. Jenn trained herself on the iMovie software that came free with her laptop and moved on to Final Cut Pro. Michelle also suggests researching free and inexpensive apps online to help with editing. And the video length? Once you get into double digits, you&amp;#39;ve gone too long. Bethany likes a final cut to stay between five and 10 minutes, and Jenn sets a limit at 10.\n\nFinal (and valuable!) words of advice:\n\n &amp;quot;Don&amp;#39;t think about success: Think about what you want to put out. \u00A0Treat it like a hobby or passion project, and your authenticity will naturally shine through.&amp;quot; \u2014Michelle\n\n&amp;quot;One of the most crucial parts to building a strong community is being consistent\u2014not just by uploading frequently, but also by responding to comments, tweets, and everything else. It&amp;#39;s important to show your audience that you appreciate their support by always interacting with them.&amp;quot; \u2014Bethany\n\n&amp;quot;If you run into a issue with editing or filming, take initiative and find the answer online. Google is your best friend!&amp;quot; \u2014Jenn"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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